Review: Cool Massage — Seoul, South Korea

Wednesday, December 14th, 2016

Spinning barber pole marks the spot.

A while back I reviewed an interesting hand service massage shop in the famous Gangnam section of Seoul. South Korea is home to countless adult entertainment venues so it only makes sense that similar names would exist. Today I will review Cool Massage near the Incheon International Airport.

The Unseo neighborhood that Cool Massage is located in is rather compact and easy to navigate. It is surrounded by water so even going off the beaten path could only get one so far. Most visitors probably access the area by using the AREX train. This train which has signs and announcements in English connects directly to Seoul and the airport which is only two stops away.

Unseo station has only one main exit. Going through this exit and crossing the road brings one to a city block lined with convenience stores, restaurants and at least one Thai massage parlor. Making a right at the next intersection leads and then another right quickly after that puts on in a pedestrian concourse with access to all sorts of businesses including bars and the well marked Cool Massage.

Cool Massage has at least one sign in English and two spinning barber poles with English and Korean letters. They like the many signs inside the building that houses Cool Massage clearly lead customers o the fifth floor. Climbing the stairs or taking the lift to the fifth floor reveals a worn down hallway. On one side is a public restroom. On the other side is a tinted sliding door that is very obviously the entrance to Cool Massage.

Just inside the door customers find a small desk with a bell. There they are greeted by a manager who explains that the price is 180,000 Won ($162 USD) for a session. He doesn’t explain what the session includes but one can make an educated guess based on the price and location.

Once customers pay the fee they are led to one of many small massage rooms. There they are greeted by a relatively attractive Korean masseuse in her thirties. Customers are then asked to undress and out on a pair of shorts and slippers. When this is done they are led to a large shower room

The shower room is lined in tile and includes a wash table. Customers lay down on that table so that the masseuse can wash them down front and back. In the buff she proceeds from the thorough cleaning to the main event which consists of the kind of standard covered oral and full services that these sorts of places tend to offer.

Once the service is rendered the customers are washed by hand then led back to the massage rooms to change into their street clothes. From there they head back out the door.

At places like Cool Massage mechanical service is the norm. The job is almost always done but without any feeling of intimacy. That’s as true in Seoul as it is anywhere else and it makes sense considering the procedure. I don’t know how many customers women like those working at Cool Massage see in a day but I’m quite sure it is more than one. There are always exceptions however and at Cool Massage there are least a few women who seem to have passion about their work. In some instances they are inspired to go above and beyond the call of duty which surely must win them repeat business.

Cool Massage is a little worse for wear but the facilities are still nicer than those in a lot of the popular massage parlors of Bangkok. The place is fully open to foreigners and easy to navigate. The women do their jobs and in at least come cases do even more than is required. I give the place three stars.

Cool Massage. Incheon, South Korea. Open twenty four hours a day, seven days a week. Click here for a map.